elinor wonders why

Speed Racer - Elinor has a need for speed and wants to make her racecar go faster! So, she and her friends observe birds and fish and come to realize that they are both very fast, because of the shape of their bodies, tails and wings. The kids then decide the best way to make their race car go faster is by changing its shape. They make the car more aerodynamic by building it the same shape as a bird or fish. Ready, set.... gooooo! One of These Goats - Substitute Teacher Mr. Hamster wants to learn everyone's names, but he has trouble telling the Goat twins apart, so Elinor, Ari and Olive decide to help him. This is tricky, because the Goat Twins look so much alike, especially today, when they've decided to wear the same color dress. After observing them closely and studying each Goat's characteristics, the kids realize that even though the Goats are very similar, there are many small ways to tell them apart if only you take a closer look.

Speedy Swimming - The kids go to the local lake for a nice swim and discover that many animals can swim really fast. Elinor then notices something interesting -- ducks, along with other animals that swim, like frogs and turtles, have webbed feet. The three little scientists discover that webbed feet help these creatures get around easier in the water, which makes them swim faster. The kids are inspired by this discovery and use flippers to swim fast all over the lake! Strawberry Jam - It's Elinor's Dad's birthday and he's in great spirits, because they are doing his favorite thing - going camping. But, when Elinor and Olive plan the perfect camping breakfast, they realize they're out of strawberry jam, which he loves. What are they going to do?! The two kids set out to find some strawberries and learn how to tell which strawberries are ripe and ready to be eaten and which are not. The two girls then use the ripe strawberries to make the perfect birthday breakfast for Elinor's Dad.

Burrowing Owl Girl - Elinor is very excited, because she's visiting her grandparents in the desert. While out exploring with her grandmother, the always curious Elinor comes across a peculiar looking owl that is smaller than any other owl she's ever seen. Even more peculiar, this owl is out during the day! How can that be? After some careful observations, she realizes she DOESN'T know everything there is to know about owls, and learns that the owl she spotted is a burrowing owl, which lives in the desert and runs around during the day. Elinor is reminded that nature is full of surprises! Olive's Tree - Olive shows her friends her favorite tree in the forest. The next day, however, they're sad to see that the tree has fallen over. The three little scientists set out to find out why, and soon learn that Olive's tree has simply entered the final stage of its life cycle. Trees go from a seed, to sprout, to sapling, to full mature tree and finally, to a wildlife tree, which is a tree that has fallen over. Even though the tree has fallen, Olive is comforted to know that it will still be around for a long time, providing a home to many creatures in the forest.

The Town Picnic - It's time for the Animal Town picnic, but Ari is growing impatient waiting for Ms. Llama's famous ketchup, which just won't come out of the bottle. Meanwhile, Elinor and her friends follow a bee to its hive and observe the honey-making process, where they discover that honey is goopier when it has less water in it. Using this new-found knowledge, the kids are inspired to solve M. Llama's ketchup problem by adding water and making it less goopy, just in time for Ari to enjoy his delicious sandwich. Yum! The Amazing Expandable Clubhouse - Elinor, Olive and Ari are happy to welcome new members to The Explorer's Club, but as more and more kids join, a big problem arises: their clubhouse isn't big enough to fit all the new Explorers! When the entire Clubhouse rolls down the hill, Elinor and her friends need to find a solution. After observing their snail friends, Norma and Lulu, they realize that a snail's shell expands as it grows, which gives them the idea to EXPAND their Clubhouse, adding new sections to make it nice and spacious for all to play!

The Lizard Lounge - Mrs. Beaver wants to build a new park bench in a perfect spot, but there's a giant rock in the way. No problem, they'll just move it, but then they run into another problem: lizards, who keep reappearing on the rock. With a little observation, Elinor and her friends realize that lizards like the rock because it's in the sun, and the lizards need a warm place to rest because they're cold blooded. So, the kids make a new cozy spot in the sun for their lizard friends. Eventually, the lizards move and Mrs. Beaver is able to build the bench. Feathers - When Ari finds a particularly cool feather and puts it in his cap, Elinor starts to wonder why birds have feathers in the first place. It's time for more observations! The group splits up and each of the kids observe interesting birds and conclude that birds need feathers for different reasons: to fly, to stay warm, and for decorations, sort of like their very own version of clothes! Ms. Mole confirms they are ALL right. In the end, Ari realizes there's another cool thing you can do with a feather - it makes a perfect sandcastle flag!

Elinor is friends with a chickadee bird she names Chicky, but when snow covers the yard, she starts to worry about how Chicky will find food in the winter. She and her friends then observe that birds all have a unique way of finding food during the winter months, called foraging. This new knowledge inspires Elinor, Olive and Ari to build bird feeders to make food easier to find for their feathery friends!

To Bee or Not to Bee - Elinor, Ari, Olive and Koa are having a picnic in the forest, when all of a sudden, a few honey bees come over to check out the kids' food. A nervous Koa gets antsy and starts swatting at the bees because he's afraid of them. This gives Elinor an idea to help her friend get over his fear of bees. After some very careful bee observations, the kids conclude that bees are tiny and a lot more afraid of us than we are of them. They also realize that instead of swatting at bees, you should stay calm and steady when a bee is around, and you are a lot less likely to get stung. Turtle Crossing - Elinor, Olive and Ari are having a blast riding their bikes along the park's brand-new dirt bike-path. Suddenly, they must slam on the brakes: a sweet little turtle is trying to cross the path to get to a small pond on the other side. The kids learn all about how turtles' eggs are laid on land and the babies must make it back to the water when they hatch. The problem is, the dirt bike path is right in the turtles' way. After some careful thinking, the kids work together to move their new bike path around the turtle crossing and save the day!